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Pi Beta Phi Elementary School ‘Class of 2016’ explores parks
AUGUST 23, 2016 at 5:51 p.m.



pi beta phi elementary
Pi Beta Phi at Stones River National Battlefield May 2016. Image courtesy of GSMNP.

 

GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK — Great Smoky Mountains National Park partnered with Pi Beta Phi Elementary School in Gatlinburg, TN to provide a series of special experiences in honor of the National Park Service (NPS) Centennial. Beginning when students were in the fifth grade, the Class of 2016 had the unique opportunity to visit a diversity of NPS site through their eighth grade year. Students participated in curriculum-aligned learning experiences in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Cumberland Gap National Historical Site, Andrew Johnson National Historic Site, Carl Sandburg National Historic Site, and Stones River National Battlefield.

“We hope that the Parks as Classrooms program and the addition of the Class of 2016 experience has provided an opportunity for increased awareness of our national parks and enhanced the connection with diverse communities adjacent to the parks,” says Joy Absher, Great Smoky Mountains National Park Acting Education Branch Chief. “We hope to have inspired some of our future park stewards to become more involved in preserving our national parks.”

Pi Beta Phi Elementary School has an established 20-year partnership with Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Their curriculum includes both teacher-directed and ranger-directed field trips to promote cooperative learning by students and authentic assessment by teachers. The program is comprehensive in scope, providing three to five lessons taught in the park for each grade level, enabling students to experience the Smokies on over 40 different occasions in a kindergarten through eighth grade education at Pi Beta Phi.

“It’s a one in a million program because it takes us to national parks,” said Riley Aldridge, Pi Beta Phi Class of 2016 graduate. “Some kids never get to see national parks. We got to see them and it was pretty awesome. We learned about biodiversity and how to protect the animals living there. From litter pick-ups to hiking to Mt. Le Conte, the program has taught me a lot about the parks and how to keep them safe. I want to keep it safe so that my kids and grandkids can enjoy it.”

After nearly a decade of previous visits to Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Pi Beta Phi’s Class of 2016 spent their last Parks as Classrooms outing at Stones River National Battlefield near Murfressboro, TN. In May 2016, thirty-two eighth grade students attended the culminating, overnight trip to learn about the Battle of Stones River. Students participated by listening to stories of the past, loading a Civil War replica cannon, cooking meals over the campfire, and visiting the historic Civil War battlefield.

“It has been a once in a life-time experience for the students in our community to immerse themselves in the history and culture of Stones River National Battlefield,” said Melissa Crisp, Parks as Classrooms Project Coordinator at Pi Beta Phi School Elementary School. “Since the Smokies are a large part of our community, it was great for them to see firsthand how they affect and can help protect the Smokies and our other national parks.”

For more information about the Parks as Classrooms program, please visit the park website at www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/education/classrooms/index.htm.

Published August 23, 2016










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